The Macedonian Healthcare Ministry issued a press release to defend itself after two dozen passengers infected with the coronavirus were able to board a flight to Finland from the Skopje airport this weekend.

This failure prompted Finland to reintroduce quarantine for new arrivals from at-risk countries. According to the Government, the fault lies with the transit agreement with Kosovo and other countries in the region, who hold dual citizenship. Most of the passengers on the flight were actually Kosovan citizens who have dual EU passports and as such they are allowed to enter Macedonia without a test in case they are just transiting. The passengers were only asked to sign a statement that they will fly out of Macedonia within three hours after entering the country, and left for the Finnish city of Tartu.